General Information

Introduction

The College of Anaesthetists of Ireland (CAI) has established Professional Competence Schemes (PCS) under the auspices of the Medical Council to facilitate enrolled registrants fulfill the requirements of the Medical Practitioners Act, 2007.

1. The anaesthetist is registered on the register of medical specialists for Anaesthesia maintained by the Irish Medical Council.

2. The anaesthetist is a practitioner registered on the general or supervised divisions of the register maintained by the Irish Medical Council, whose postgraduate qualifications and/or experience and/or current practice in anaesthesia are reviewed by the College of Anaesthetists of Ireland.

3. The RMP has a practice with a particular interest in Pain or Intensive Care Medicine. The College will review such postgraduate qualifications and/or experience and/or current practice as advised by the Faculty of Pain Medicine and Joint Faculty of Intensive Care Medicine of Ireland.

How to enrol

The CAI website enables you to submit an application to enrol. You will be guided through the application process, and asked to select enrolment into either the Specialist, General or Supervised Division Schemes. On completion of the details required, you may submit the application as advised. Alternatively, you may save your application for completion later using the password provided.

Once submitted, you will receive an immediate email confirming receipt of application and a commitment to process your application within 5 working days.

If you fulfill category (1) above under enrolment, and you are a Fellow of the College, your application will be processed on-line, and, once the detail is confirmed through the CAI database, an email confirming acceptance of application and fee applicable will be sent to you. Upon receipt of the enrolment fee (best done on-line), a further email will confirm that your PCS portfolio has been activated and you may proceed to log PCS credits or points. If you are not a Fellow of the College, verification of some application details may be required.

If you fulfill category (2) or (3) above, and are not active on the College database, verification of some application details may be required.

Procedure for application and assessment (category 2 and 3 above):

Practitioners listed on the General Division will contact the College of Anaesthetists of Ireland.

The following process will apply:

1. Practitioner submits a detailed Application Form outlining training and experience to date

2. The College will review the Application Form and make an initial determination as to the suitability of the practitioner aligning with the College

If the application is accepted, an email confirming acceptance of application and fee applicable will be sent to you. Upon receipt of the enrolment fee (best done on-line), a further email will confirm that your PCS portfolio has been activated and you may proceed to log PCS points or credits.

If the application is unsuccessful the College will inform both the Applicant and the Irish Medical Council giving the reasons for the decision.

PCS Enrolment fee 2018/2019:

Enrolment Fees for 2018/2019 are:

€180 for CAI Fellows in Good Standing and who pay an annual subscription

€300 for all other applicants

This fee structure is as agreed and set with the Medical Council.

PCS Portfolio

The CAI software allows the enrolled RMP to maintain a full record of their PCS activities. This can only be submitted on-line through the PCS portal www.anaesthesia.ie. (Login with your username and password, and click the "My College" button on the top menu bar). The CAI cannot accept any paper records of PCS activities nor can it up-load activities on behalf of the RMP.

Annual Statement of Participation:

The CAI will issue a PCS Statement of Participation annually to the RMP, according to the requirements of the Medical Council, reflecting the credits accrued within the submitted portfolio.

Maintenance of Records

It is the responsibility of the Registered Medical Practitioner to retain all evidence in support of on-line submitted PCS activities. These should be retained for a minimum of 6 years or as advised by the IMC. They are not to be submitted to the CAI unless requested as part of a verification process.

Frequently Asked Questions

The following PCS FAQ's have been recently updated to include the most up to date PCS Information.